Q1:

Project Risk Management

The Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK® Guide, 5th Edition) defines
project risk as “an uncertain event or condition that, if it occurs, has a positive or
negative effect on one or more project objectives, such as scope, schedule, cost, or
quality.” Notice that these risks can be considered positive or negative depending on
their effects. Project risk management seeks to maximize positive risks while avoiding
or mitigating negative risks. A risk management plan is typically included as part of a
larger project plan, and is initiated early in the project lifecycle; the risk plan then
evolves as the project progresses. It is generally the project manager’s role to maintain
the plan and update it periodically to ensure ongoing clarity and effectiveness. 
The overall goal of a risk management plan is to manage risk in a way that ensures a
successful project outcome. The planning process enables managers to clearly identify
risks, and then develop and document risk mitigation strategies and contingency
plans. The process also includes identifying both the costs and actions necessary for
implementing the plan. Once completed, the plan serves as a guide for everyone
involved in a project and is particularly important as a tool to communicate with key
stakeholders.

Ways to Handle Risk

Once you’ve identified and evaluated a risk, there are several potential responses. The
response you choose will depend on the probability of the risk occurring and the
potential severity of its impact on a project. 
 Avoid: Avoiding risks is ideal, and especially important if the risk is high
impact and likely to occur. Avoidance tactics may require greater investment
(in order to develop alternative strategies), but this additional cost and effort is
appropriate for high-impact, high-probability negative risks.
 Transfer: This method refers to transferring risk to another party (for
example, the act of purchasing insurance moves the risk to the insurance
provider). This response is common for risks that have a high negative impact
but a low probability of occurring.
 Mitigate: Mitigation aims to reduce either the likelihood or the level of impact
of a risk, and is used for risks that are likely to occur, but also likely to be low-
impact.
 Accept: Acceptance is an option when there is no other solution, but would
only be used for low-impact risks that have a low probability of occurring. 
Risks can be internal or external, and projects may face a combination of both.
Internal risks may include issues with technology, staffing, financial security, and
other factors that can be controlled within your organization. External risks can be
harder to predict and control, and may include factors such as issues with suppliers,
changes in the political climate or economy, or even the weather. The process of
analyzing risks and measuring them on a scale of probability and severity can provide
the initial framework for determining which of the above methods will be the most
effective response to a given risk.

Risk Management and HIPAA Compliance in Healthcare Organizations

Healthcare organizations are under strict regulations when it comes to risk and
compliance. That’s why the ability to determine where those risks exist and establish
a plan to manage them is extremely important for the business, both legally and
functionally.
Risk management for healthcare organizations helps to ensure the all businesses are
compliant with HIPAA requirements, and outlines potential risks that could occur in a
healthcare organization, such as clinical testing errors, hospital facilities issues,
security breaches of protected health information PHI, and more. To ensure that all
healthcare data is effectively analyzed for security and protection purposes, you need
a tool that is able to quickly identify, mitigate, and prevent risks from coming to
fruition, while also offering real-time visibility into all potential risks.
Smartsheet is a work execution platform that enables healthcare companies to view
and update risks across the company with real-time dashboards, so you can make the
best decisions at the right time. Highlight all identified risks and manage how they are
addressed, all while ensuring utmost security and protection of PHI. Set sharing
settings to ensure that only authorized users have access to confidential information,
so your organization remains compliant with HIPAA regulations.
Interested in learning more about how Smartsheet can help you accurately and
securely document healthcare processes and maximize your efforts?
Discover Smartsheet for Healthcare.
 

Example of Risk Management Plan Outline

The length and level of detail included in a risk management plan will vary depending
on the scope of a project and the needs of an organization. Here is a risk management
plan example outline that describes the information you typically include:
 Introduction: The first section in a risk management plan may focus on an
executive summary or project description, including the purpose of the project.
It may go into detail about the scope of the project, objectives, and important
background information, and provide an overview of risk management
approach and strategies. 
 Risk Management Approach: This may be a brief summary or detailed
section providing information on the risk management process, the
methodology used, and specific tools and techniques to be utilized.
 Roles and Responsibilities: Here you list the project staff members involved
in the risk process, along with each of their roles and responsibilities. 
 Risk Identification: This section describes how you will identify risks and/or
lists risks that you have already found. Methods for risk identification may
include brainstorming, examining the project’s work breakdown structure
(WBS) in order to identify risks and create a corresponding risk breakdown
structure (RBS), conducting expert interviews, consulting with key
stakeholders, or reviewing common risks from similar projects. 
 Risk Analysis and Evaluation: You must analyze risks that you identify to
determine what effects they might have on a project, such as a delayed
timeline or reduced quality. You must also evaluate these risks for probability
and impact. This section may describe how probability of occurrence and
impact are calculated and combined to create a numeric score for each risk.
Here, you can also define the categories and terms you use to describe the
 different levels of probability and impact. In addition, if you’ve determined
top risks, you can list them here.
 Risk Response Planning: You can explain the process for conducting
response planning here, including how a project team will develop actions to
address both negative and positive risks. 
 Risk Mitigation: You can list potential risk mitigation strategies here,
connecting possible actions to risks based on the level of seriousness. This
section may also consider important risks that you have identified, providing
detail on what type of mitigation you’ve proposed, ownership for
implementing the action, and cost implications.
 Risk Monitoring and Reporting: This section may describe how you will
monitor risks, the frequency of reviews, how you will identify new risks, and
the method and schedule you will use for reporting. 
 Risk Register: Also called a risk log, the register typically appears at the end
of a risk management plan, or as a separate document. The register tracks
important details about each risk including probability, impact, overall score,
and status. It essentially combines the results from risk analysis and response
planning into a spreadsheet or chart for easy reference.
You will need to adjust the content and formatting of this example plan to meet the
needs of your business or project. To see how others have handled this process for
similar projects, you can search for sample risk management plans online and
compare different approaches. Comparing project risk management plan examples
may save you time in the long run, especially if you are new to the process. To use the
free templates provided below, simply h’download your chosen file, and make any
required edits.

’
Risk Management Planning Templates for Excel\
Project Risk Management Plan Templateg\\
This template allows you to create a project risk management plan for Excel, which
may be helpful for adding any numerical data or calculations. You ‘‘\include typical
sections in the template, such as risk identification, analys\\is and monitoring, roles
and responsibilities, and a risk register. Add or remove ‘sections to create a
customized template for your projec.

Risk Register Template

On this risk register template, you include project details at the top and list risks
below with assigned tracking numbers. The register provides a detailed log of who
owns a risk, the level of impact and probability, planned actions, and the response
status. This is a spreadsheet template that can be easily edited to include additional
columns if needed.

Risk Assessment Matrix

This simple matrix template is designed to aid the assessment process, providing a
quick view of the relationship between the likelihood of occurrence and the severity
of impact, as well as the number of risks that fall into each category. The color
scheme makes it easy to distinguish among the different ratings, so you can get an
overview of the levels of risk that need to be addressed.
Q2:

Introduction

Problems arise in every organization. Such problems as what products/systems to

develop, should capacity be expanded, or should a computer be purchased are just a
few of an endless number of continuing problems about which management must
concern itself if the firm is to survive. These problems and their alternative solutions
establish some elements of change around which the organization must adapt. Projects
are generally established to carry out these changes and someone is always
responsible for each project's successful completion.[11]

Every project is unique in terms of the problems that arise, the priorities and resources
assigned it, the environment in which it operates, and the project manager's attitude
and style used to guide and control project activities. Therefore, the organizational
structure for the project must be designed to fit within that project's operating
constraints. The organizational structure implemented may not be the same structure
used throughout the life cycle of the project due to changes in priorities, available
resource, project personnel, laws, and other contingencies. Regardless of the project
management structure chosen, management must realize that a dynamic state of
equilibrium between limited personnel and financial resources and the objectives of
the project will be necessary if project management is to be successful in their
particular organization.[11] Before touching on the major tools and techniques of
project management, let's get to the bottom of what project management truly is.
Later, I will list the benefits that the tools and techniques of project management bring
to the systems analysis process.

Projects

Nearly every activity within an organization could be labeled as a project possessing

unique characteristics and varying levels of importance to the organization. A project
is defined as a planned undertaking of related activities to reach an objective that has
a beginning and an end.[16] All projects solve some type of problem, but projects
may also be established simply to determine and define feasible alternative solutions
to problems. Seven primary characteristics of a project include:[11]

1. Objective: Each has a specific goal to reach.

2. Schedule: Point in time in which they must be accomplished.
3. Complexity: Does the technology exist to achieve the project objectives?
4. Size and Nature of Task: Step-by-step plan of action.
5. Resources: Labor, personnel, equipment, materials, facilities, etc.
6. Organizational Structure: The 'meshing' of project requirements into the
existing organization.
7. Information and Control Systems: These must be structured to handle
problems through the typical lines of authority (Prin. of Project Mgmt).

Project Management
In the past, a company typically decided to undertake a project effort, assigned the
project and the "necessary" resources to a carefully selected individual and assumed
they were using some form of project management. Organizational implications were
of little importance. Although the basic concepts of project management are simple,
applying these concepts to an existing organization is not. Richard P. Olsen, in his
article "Can Project Management Be Defined?" defined project management as "…the
application of a collection of tools and techniques…to direct the use of diverse
resources toward the accomplishment of a unique, complex, one-time task within
time, cost, and quality constraints. Each task requires a particular mix of these tools
and techniques structured to fit the task environment and life cycle (from conception
to completion) of the task." [11]

Employing project management technologies minimizes the disruption of routine

business activities in many cases by placing under a single command all of the skills,
technologies, and resources needed to realize the project. The skills required depend
on each specific project and the resources available at that time. The greater the
amount of adjustments a parent organization must make to fulfill project objectives,
the greater chance exists for project failure. The form of project management will be
unique for every project endeavor and will change throughout the project.[11]

The project management process typically includes four key phases: initiating the
project, planning the project, executing the project, and closing the project. An outline
of each phase is provided below.

Initiating the Project

The project management techniques related to the project initiation phase include:
[16]

1. Establishing the project initiation team. This involves organizing team

members to assist in carrying out the project initiation activities.
2. Establishing a relationship with the customer. The understanding of your
customer's organization will foster a stronger relationship between the two of
you.
3. Establishing the project initiation plan. Defines the activities required to
organize the team while working to define the goals and scope of the project.
4. Establishing management procedures. Concerned with developing team
communication and reporting procedures, job assignments and roles, project
change procedure, and how project funding and billing will be handled.
5. Establishing the project management environment and workbook. Focuses on
the collection and organization of the tools that you will use while managing
the project.

Planning the Project

The project management techniques related to the project planning phase include:[16]

1. Describing project scope, alternatives, and feasibility. The understanding of

the content and complexity of the project. Some relevant questions that should
be answered include:

1. What problem/opportunity does the project address?

 2. What results are to be achieved?
3. What needs to be done?
4. How will success be measured?
5. How will we know when we are finished?

2. Divide the project into tasks. This technique is also known as the work
breakdown structure. This step is done to ensure an easy progression between
tasks.
3. Estimating resources and creating a resource plan. This helps to gather and
arrange resources in the most effective manner.
4. Developing a preliminary schedule. In this step, you are to assign time
estimates to each activity in the work breakdown structure. From here, you
will be able to create the target start and end dates for the project.
5. Developing a communication plan. The idea here is to outline the
communication procedures between management, team members, and the
customer.
6. Determining project standards and procedures. The specification of how
various deliverables are produced and tested by the project team.
7. Identifying and assessing risk. The goal here is to identify potential sources of
risk and the consequences of those risks.
8. Creating a preliminary budget. The budget should summarize the planned
expenses and revenues related to the project.
9. Developing a statement of work. This document will list the work to be done
and the expected outcome of the project.
10. Setting a baseline project plan. This should provide an estimate of the
project's tasks and resource requirements.

Executing the Project

The project management techniques related to the project execution phase include:
[16]

1. Executing the baseline project plan. The job of the project manager is to

initiate the execution of project activities, acquire and assign resources, orient
and train new team members, keep the project on schedule, and assure the
quality of project deliverables.
2. Monitoring project progress against the baseline project plan. Using Gantt
and PERT charts, which will be discussed in detail further on in this paper, can
assist the project manager in doing this.
3. Managing changes to the baseline project plan.
4. Maintaining the project workbook. Maintaining complete records of all project
events is necessary. The project workbook is the primary source of
information for producing all project reports.
5. Communicating the project status. This means that the entire project plan
should be shard with the entire project team and any revisions to the plan
should be communicated to all interested parties so that everyone understands
how the plan is evolving.

Closing Down the Project

The project management techniques related to the project closedown phase include:
[16]
 1. Closing down the project. In this stage, it is important to notify all interested
parties of the completion of the project. Also, all project documentation and
records should be finalized so that the final review of the project can be
conducted.
2. Conducting post project reviews. This is done to determine the strengths and
weaknesses of project deliverables, the processes used to create them, and the
project management process.
3. Closing the customer contract. The final activity is to ensure that all
contractual terms of the project have been met.

The techniques listed above in the four key phases of project management enable a
project team to:[3]

 Link project goals and objectives to stakeholder needs.

 Focus on customer needs.
 Build high-performance project teams.
 Work across functional boundaries.
 Develop work breakdown structures.
 Estimate project costs and schedules.
 Meet time constraints.
 Calculate risks.
 Establish a dependable project control and monitoring system.

Tools

Project management is a challenging task with many complex responsibilities.

Fortunately, there are many tools available to assist with accomplishing the tasks and
executing the responsibilities. Some require a computer with supporting software,
while others can be used manually. Project managers should choose a project
management tool that best suits their management style. No one tool addresses all
project management needs. Program Evaluation Review Technique (PERT) and Gantt
Charts are two of the most commonly used project management tools and are
described below. Both of these project management tools can be produced manually
or with commercially available project management software.[4]

PERT is a planning and control tool used for defining and controlling the tasks
necessary to complete a project. PERT charts and Critical Path Method (CPM) charts
are often used interchangeably; the only difference is how task times are computed.
Both charts display the total project with all scheduled tasks shown in sequence. The
displayed tasks show which ones are in parallel, those tasks that can be performed at
the same time.[3] A graphic representation called a "Project Network" or "CPM
Diagram" is used to portray graphically the interrelationships of the elements of a
project and to show the order in which the activities must be performed.[2]

PERT planning involves the following steps:[7]

1. Identify the specific activities and milestones. The activities are the tasks of the
project. The milestones are the events that mark the beginning and the end of
one or more activities.
2. Determine the proper sequence of activities. This step may be combined with
#1 above since the activity sequence is evident for some tasks. Other tasks
may require some analysis to determine the exact order in which they should
be performed.
3. Construct a network diagram. Using the activity sequence information, a
network diagram can be drawn showing the sequence of the successive and
parallel activities. Arrowed lines represent the activities and circles or
"bubbles" represent milestones.
4. Estimate the time required for each activity. Weeks are a commonly used unit
of time for activity completion, but any consistent unit of time can be used. A
distinguishing feature of PERT is it's ability to deal with uncertainty in activity
completion times. For each activity, the model usually includes three time
estimates:

o Optimistic time - the shortest time in which the activity can be

completed.
o Most likely time - the completion time having the highest probability.
o Pessimistic time - the longest time that an activity may take.

From this, the expected time for each activity can be calculated using the
following weighted average:

Expected Time = (Optimistic + 4 x Most Likely + Pessimistic) / 6

This helps to bias time estimates away from the unrealistically short
timescales normally assumed.

5. Determine the critical path. The critical path is determined by adding

the times for the activities in each sequence and determining the
longest path in the project. The critical path determines the total
calendar time required for the project. The amount of time that a non-
critical path activity can be delayed without delaying the project is
referred to as slack time.

If the critical path is not immediately obvious, it may be helpful to determine

the following four times for each activity:

6.

o ES - Earliest Start time

o EF - Earliest Finish time
o LS - Latest Start time
o LF - Latest Finish time

These times are calculated using the expected time for the relevant activities.
The earliest start and finish times of each activity are determined by working
forward through the network and determining the earliest time at which an
activity can start and finish considering its predecessor activities. The latest
start and finish times are the latest times that an activity can start and finish
 without delaying the project. LS and LF are found by working backward
through the network. The difference in the latest and earliest finish of each
activity is that activity's slack. The critical path then is the path through the
network in which none of the activities have slack.

The variance in the project completion time can be calculated by summing the
variances in the completion times of the activities in the critical path. Given
this variance, one can calculate the probability that the project will be
completed by a certain date assuming a normal probability distribution for the
critical path. The normal distribution assumption holds if the number of
activities in the path is large enough for the central limit theorem to be
applied.

7. Update the PERT chart as the project progresses. As the project unfolds, the
estimated times can be replaced with actual times. In cases where there are
delays, additional resources may be needed to stay on schedule and the PERT
chart may be modified to reflect the new situation. An example of a PERT
chart is provided below:

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Benefits to using a PERT chart or the Critical Path Method include:[6],[7]

 Improved planning and scheduling of activities.

 Improved forecasting of resource requirements.
 Identification of repetitive planning patterns which can be followed in other
projects, thus simplifying the planning process.
 Ability to see and thus reschedule activities to reflect interproject
dependencies and resource limitations following know priority rules.
 It also provides the following: expected project completion time, probability
of completion before a specified date, the critical path activities that impact
completion time, the activities that have slack time and that can lend resources
to critical path activities, and activity start and end dates.

Gantt charts are used to show calendar time task assignments in days, weeks or
months. The tool uses graphic representations to show start, elapsed, and completion
times of each task within a project. Gantt charts are ideal for tracking progress. The
number of days actually required to complete a task that reaches a milestone can be
compared with the planned or estimated number. The actual workdays, from actual
start to actual finish, are plotted below the scheduled days. This information helps
target potential timeline slippage or failure points. These charts serve as a valuable
budgeting tool and can show dollars allocated versus dollars spent.[4]
To draw up a Gantt chart, follow these steps:[1]

1. List all activities in the plan. For each task, show the earliest start date,
estimated length of time it will take, and whether it is parallel or sequential. If
tasks are sequential, show which stages they depend on.
2. Head up graph paper with the days or weeks through completion.
3. Plot tasks onto graph paper. Show each task starting on the earliest possible
date. Draw it as a bar, with the length of the bar being the length of the task.
Above the task bars, mark the time taken to complete them.
4. Schedule activities. Schedule them in such a way that sequential actions are
carried out in the required sequence. Ensure that dependent activities do not
start until the activities they depend on have been completed. Where possible,
schedule parallel tasks so that they do not interfere with sequential actions on
the critical path. While scheduling, ensure that you make best use of the
resources you have available, and do not over-commit resources. Also, allow
some slack time in the schedule for holdups, overruns, failures, etc.
5. Presenting the analysis. In the final version of your Gantt chart, combine your
draft analysis (#3 above) with your scheduling and analysis of resources (#4
above). This chart will show when you anticipate that jobs should start and
finish. An example of a Gantt chart is provided below:

<="">

Benefits of using a Gantt chart include:[8]

 Gives an easy to understand visual display of the scheduled time of a task or

activity.
 Makes it easy to develop "what if" scenarios.
 Enables better project control by promoting clearer communication.
  Becomes a tool for negotiations.
 Shows the actual progress against the planned schedule.
 Can report results at appropriate levels.
 Allows comparison of multiple projects to determine risk or resource
allocation.
 Rewards the project manager with more visibility and control over the project.

The Future

Project management tools have evolved from simple spreadsheet products to

sophisticated, Web-based project information portals. The obvious trend in project
management software, as with almost everything in information technology, is a
move toward Web-based systems. Most project management tools can be accessed via
browsers and those that do not currently have this capability are moving in that
direction.[17] One product that allows users to take non-Web-based project
management tools and to then bring the data to a Web browser is mesaVista from
Mesa Systems Guild, Warwick, R.I. The product acts as a portal development tool
that allows firms to view information from products such as Microsoft Project over
the Web. These project management portals are becoming more common as the
collaboration capabilities of project management tools improve.[9]

Another trend is the move toward hosted project management applications. For
example, users can outsource project management to product/service offerings such as
onProject.com from onProject.com Inc., Morristown, N.J., or WorkLenz from Metier
Ltd., Washington D.C. onProject.com is an Internet workspace that allows users to
share and mange information associated with projects and their related tasks.
WorkLenz is a software application that serves as a virtual project manager with
intelligent agent features. Offered via the ASP model, WorkLenz manages a
customer's project and provides real-time alerts of issues, inefficiencies and problems,
and even recommends solutions.[9]

Project management tools continue to evolve in terms of capabilities and user

interface. The general direction is toward more integrated process and knowledge
management systems, and user interfaces with a "Web" look.[17] Project management
tools are gradually becoming integrated project information portals with capabilities
far beyond simple project tracking and reporting.[9]

As the sophistication of these products continues to grow, however, so too does their
complexity. It is important for project management software vendors to keep things
simple and easy to use. Project management tools should not become the focus of a
project manager's life or add time to project activities. If a project manager has to
spend too much time learning a product's features, their ability to actively manage the
project process diminishes, totally defeating the purpose of the tool.[9]

References:
1. "Introduction to Project Management
Skills". http://www.mindtools.com/pages/main/newMN_PPM.htm. Last
update time unknown. Accessed Nov. 2, 2002.
2. The Numbers Group. "Project
Management". http://www.snc.edu/socsci/chair/333/numbers.html. Last
update time unknown. Accessed Nov. 4, 2002.
3. "What is Project
Management?". http://www.esi_intl.com/Public/projectmanagement/whypm.a
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Techniques". http://www.tifb.state.tx.us/Handbooks/Project_Management.htm
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11. Adams, John R. "Principles of Project Management". (c)1997 by the Project
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12. Craig, H Kent. "PM 101: Assess Your Aptitude, Mindset,
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Management". Optimize. Oct. 2002. Pages 73-78.
14. Friedlein, Ashley. "Web Project Management". (c)2001 by the Presentation
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15. Hartman, Francis; Ashrafi, Rafi A. "Project Management in the Information
Systems and Information Technologies Industries." Project Management
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Analysis & Design". (c)2002 by Pearson Education, Inc. Prentice Hall.
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Management Journal. June 2002. Vol. 33. Issue 2. Pages 5-18.
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Corporation.
19. Quick, James Aaron; New, Cheryl Carter. "Grant Winner's Toolkit: Project
Management and Evaluation". (c)2000 by Cheryl Carter New and James
Aaron Quick. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
20. Schimmoller, Brian K. "The Changing Face of Project Management." Power
Engineering. May 2001. Vol. 105. Issue 5. Pages 28-30.